Posts tagged ferret
“Domestic weasel” [Ferret] - Mustela putorius
Did you know that ferrets were domesticated over 2500 years ago? They were used in ancient Rome to hunt rabbits, moles, and other ground-dwelling animals, and the verb “ferreting” (as in ferreting out) came from their inquisitive and seeking nature.
Throughout the middle ages, they were used by the nobility and the gentry, but their use during the Renaissance decreased. Until the late-20th century, domestic ferrets were on the decline, but in the mid-1980s, their popularity as pets began to boom. Unfortunately, in some countries, such as New Zealand, feral ferret colonies have destroyed indigenous wildlife. In North America and Northern Europe, however, pet ferrets have continued to stay popular, and wild colonies have not been established thus far.
I miss my ferrets..
Sadly in the USA the black footed ferrets ( native ) are almost extinct.( once deemed extinct..
pet ferrets are spayed and neutered before we can get them unless you have a breeders license which is WHY they don’t have colonies.
but we should be saving the Black footed ferrets
Thankfully, black-footed ferrets are recovering fairly well…they’re no Canada goose, but they’re acclimating to reintroduction amazingly, considering that they’re carnivores. Carnivores are much more difficult to reintroduce than herbivores and omnivores, but the strategy being used is proving to create fairly good hunters, and the vast majority are surviving and reproducing.
As pets, they’re fun…but they steal everything shiny. Or soft. Or whatever they like, really. When I used to play viola, they stole my (non-shiny) chin rests ALL THE TIME and kept changing their hiding spots. Le sigh.
“Domestic weasel” [Ferret] - Mustela putorius
Did you know that ferrets were domesticated over 2500 years ago? They were used in ancient Rome to hunt rabbits, moles, and other ground-dwelling animals, and the verb “ferreting” (as in ferreting out) came from their inquisitive and seeking nature.
Throughout the middle ages, they were used by the nobility and the gentry, but their use during the Renaissance decreased. Until the late-20th century, domestic ferrets were on the decline, but in the mid-1980s, their popularity as pets began to boom. Unfortunately, in some countries, such as New Zealand, feral ferret colonies have destroyed indigenous wildlife. In North America and Northern Europe, however, pet ferrets have continued to stay popular, and wild colonies have not been established thus far.
Carnivora!
All members of the order Carnivora fall into one of two sub-orders: Feliformia (cat-like), or Caniformia (dog-like). Outward appearance of carnivora can be deceiving; most people would classify the hyena and aard-wolf as “dog-like”, while the weasels and pole-martens are commonly considered “cat-like”, which they are not.
The Feliformidae are obligate carnivores; that is, they must eat meat to survive, as their body cannot produce one or more nutrients that cannot be found in plants, or that their digestive tracts cannot absorb large amounts of non-animal matter. They are not all hypercarnivorans (meat making up >70% of the diet), however. The order Feliformia includes all of the cats (Felidae), mongooses and meerkats (Herpestidae), hyenas (Hyaenidae), civets and genets (Viverridae), as well as two very small families: the Nandiniidae, which contains only the African palm civet; and the Prionodontidae, which contains the two Asiatic linsangs.
Caniformidae include the seals, sea lions, and walruses (Pinnipedia); true dogs (Canidae); bears (Ursidae); skunks (Mephitidae); badgers, weasels, and otters (Mustelidae); raccoons, coatis, and kinkajous (Procyonidae); and the family containing only the red panda (Ailuridae).
Most Caniformidae (except for the Canidae, interestingly enough) are plantigrade - that is, they walk on all of their podial and tarsal bones on the ground at the same time. This affords greater stability and weight-bearing ability and is helpful when standing your ground or trying to balance in trees.
The Feliformidae (and the true dogs, or Canidae) are almost completely digitigrade - they walk on just their finger and toe bones, and have elongated “heel” bones and Achilles tendons. Digitigrade animals can move much more quickly and quietly than plantigrade animals, and their specialized “heels” allow for spring-type motion, like what you see in cats.
Huge h/t to the ever-awesome Emily Graslie of The Brain Scoop for finding the words to simplify something I’ve wanted to post on for a while ;D Go watch The Brain Scoop and get smart!
More on Tetrapodal Locomotion!
The Brain Scoop
Images from:
[Wolverine, Walrus] American Animals. Witmer Stone and William Everett Cram, 1902.
[Spotted Hyena, California Sea Lion] The Book of the Animal Kingdom: Mammals. W. Percivall Westell, 1910.
[Black-Footed Ferret, Polar Bear] Quadrupeds of North America. John James Audubon, 1851.
[Kinkajou, Lion] Dictionnaire Universel d’Histoire Naturelle. M. Charles d’Orbigny, 1849.
Weasels and Otters
The Mustelidae family is a large and odd one. It’s been sort of a catch-all family for the taxa of poorly-differentiated carnivorous mammals that don’t seem to fit anywhere else.
One thing they do have in common, though, is anal scent glands. With the exception of the sea otter (seen here…hunting a bird?), all mustelids have and use anal scent glands for mating and territory marking.
Natural History of the Animal Kingdom for Use of Young People. W. F. Kirby, 1889.
A blog for all biological and medical ephemera, from the age of Abraham through the era of medical quackery and cure-all nostrums. Featuring illustrations, history, and totally useless trivia from the diverse realms of nature and medicine.
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